The weather has been cool for this part of the country with the lows in the mid to upper 30's and highs in the upper 60's. Not bad considering we could be back in Indiana where it is much cooler and a bit miserable.
We have just been doing a few chores around the house, cut down a branch on one of the trees that is crowding the drive where we enter the RV parking area.
Eating seems to be one of our passions, at least two and generally 3 times a day. We are planning an outing to the Heart Attack Grille before long, as soon as our friend Clark is feeling better and lets us know when he can go. I am looking forward to a visit as well as the food.
We purchased a new Garmin GPS for Christmas. It is pretty neat in what it will do. Today, we needed to go to Staples to get some ink cartridges for the printer. I checked the
phone book and got the address of one that was fairly near, put it in the GPS and followed the directions, however, there was not a Staples at that address, Only a large Lowes. I remembered that there was one on Alma School Road, so we went there and drove around a bit, not finding it, so we stopped at a bank to get some directions. While Evelyn was in the bank, I just clicked on "points of interest" and typed in Staples and up came 8 or 10 addresses in the valley for various Staples. One was only around the corner from where we were. I did not know that that kind of information was available on the GPS. Just goes to show what I know about a GPS. Live and learn, I guess. It is pretty forgiving as it will re-calculate if you make a wrong turn or fail to turn when it tells you to turn. It certainly knows more about a strange town than you do, so just do as it says and all will be well.
Our photos are of the Orange tree in the back yard as seen out of our dining room window. Nothing like fresh oranges right off the tree for breakfast.

Well, here it is the day after Christmas. We have been in Mesa, AZ since the 18th and have been resting up and visiting with Nancy B. and her friend Harry. Not a lot going on other than some grocery shopping and just bumming around in general.

Christmas Eve we went to church for a nice candle light service. Then on Christmas day we went to visit a friend that was in an assisted living facility not too far away. In the afternoon we had a cook out. We had kabobs with beef, green peppers, onions, pineapple and tomatoes, quite tasty and filling. Finished that off with a nice piece of pecan pie.
Today, we are going to visit some friends from Cherokee Village and take them to lunch. They are in an assisted living facility in Scottsdale, not too far away. We have not seen them since last winter when we were here.
Our photos are of the Inter-mountain Expressway around El Paso, TX. It was obvious that we had to do something with that mountain in front of us and apparently that is where the name came from. As you can see it is a fairly steep grade and maybe 5 miles long, so it is a long grind, some in first gear in the steeper parts. It is a really nice drive but a bit difficult for a rig of our size. We did not see any big trucks on this road, they all stayed on I10 and fought the traffic through El Paso.
This was an interesting drive, but next time I think we will stay on the interstate and just bite the bullet and stay with the big rigs.
It is apparent that the interstate has to negotiate this mountain range, but apparently easier than this expressway. Cars and light trucks had no problem with the grades, but not for big rigs.

Sunday morning, after a quite cool night boon docking at the Saguaro SKP Co-Op, we woke up to a sunny day, but cool. We needed to dump holding tanks and take on fresh water, which we did, and finally got on
the road about 11am. Back on I10 toward Tucson and road construction that we encountered the last two years, but alas, the construction has been completed and we had a nice drive on newly paved and widened roads. What a treat compared to last year trying to stay between concrete barriers that were not very far apart, especially for a wide-body motor home. We picked up sr 87 and past Casa Grande and the National Monument, Casa Grande Ruins. A very interesting study of a culture of long ago. We finally arrived in Mesa about 3:30 and parked in the street for the night and sill settle in tomorrow.
Saturday the sun was bright as you would expect in the valley of the sun, and a high temperature in the low 70's. In the 40's overnight, but better than the night before. We parked the motor home in the space beside the house and in the back yard, and the Orange tree is loaded and about ready to start harvesting the juicy fruit.
We helped Nancy put up some decorations for Christmas and went to the hardware store for some light bulbs and a couple of bolts for the motor home. Tomorrow it is off to Church and a day of rest and relaxation.
Our photos are from our trip to McDonald Observatory near Ft. Davis, TX. the first shows a part of our route up the mountain. The second shows snow that was left after the road was recently plowed. The other photo is of the sun dial showing it is a little past 12 noon. A very interesting place to visit, especially for one of the evening star viewing sessions. The altitude is over 5,000' and it is quite cool and the buildings where the telescopes are is kept at 40 degrees to keep the glass and metal in a stable state as they both change with temperature. Hopefully we can get back and see more of this facility.

Wednesday we woke up to nice sunshine but cool temperatures. A good nights rest despite the RR track nearby. In looking at the map we found we could go north from Van Horn, TX on sr54 to US180 and west to El Paso and it is only about 10 miles farther. The 53 miles up sr54 was a nice drive, good road along the mountains and several ranches on either side of the road. We passed 2 vehicles going south, one a pick up with a slide in camper and another pick up. We did see a few cows, however they have all apparently been moved to other pastures this time of year. It really did not look like there was much to eat anyway. Along
the ridge of the mountains to our east, we saw many wind generators, the farther we went the more there were, maybe a hundred or more. We picked up US180 at the base of the Guadalupe mountains and headed west for El Paso. Evelyn found a bypass around the north side of El Paso that kept us out of town. It was called inter mountain expressway. Now, I know why the name. It was a nice 4 lane divided highway until you get to the mountain. There it is also 4 lane divided, but it goes over the mountain. The sign says "road may be closed during inclimate weather". Also, slow moving vehicles next 5 miles. Well, we were the slow moving vehicle this time. It was first gear a lot of the way and about 20mph, maybe a little of 2nd gear and 30 mph. What a grind. going down the other side was a breeze, just have to use the brakes sparingly to keep the rig under 65 or so. Next time we will take I10 and fight the traffic through El Paso.
We climbed in altitude the rest of the day until we got to Deming, NM. and the Dream Catcher SKP park for the night. Cold, only 29 degrees this morning and the heat really felt good. We could see snow on the mountains nearby. They said it came about two weeks ago during a cold snap.
With a change in time, MT, we woke up an hour earlier than usual and got on the road by 9am. On west of I10 with fairly light traffic until afternoon. We stopped in Wilcox, AZ for lunch and a quick power nap and on to Benson to the SKP park called Saguaro Co-Op. They were full so we had to take a boon dock space and do without electricity, so we
will see how that goes. We have good batteries and plenty of LP so it should be alright. There are over 700 spaces here and all are full.
Our photos are from the Judge Roy Bean Museum. The top photo is of his saloon and the bar in the second photo. This is claimed to be the actual building that he used. The bottom photo is of the opra house he built, which is a reproduction of the original.
Tomorrow, we will complete the trip to Mesa, AZ and visit with our friend, Nancy B, and enjoy some of her fresh oranges. Hopefully get settled in the RV space she has beside the house and get some R&R.

This is the first time we have had internet service for a week. I will not try to bring you up to date in this one blog, however, I must say that we have left the Lone Star Corral. We certainly enjoyed our 6 weeks at
the Escapee park very much and will miss our old and new friends as well. We will also miss the good food we found in Hondo and Sabinal as well as the fellowship with out friends the Drew's.
We finally got away on Sunday about 11am and headed west out US90 toward El Paso, TX. The weather had been cooler than we really liked, lows in the 30's and high in the 50's and 60's. Hopefully we will find warmer weather as we get farther west, however there are some high altitudes we have to endure and thus cool temperatures, but that are things you have to endure, just find a place to hook up your electricity and turn on the heaters. Generally that is enough, but sometime we turn on the furnace to quickly warm it up in the morning. Surely we will find the land of warmth and sunshine soon.
The photos are of the entrance to the Lone Star Corral in Hondo, TX. This is a place we enjoy very much, actually more than any of the other Escapees Parks we have visited, so far. We will let you know if we find one we enjoy more.
Having a relatively late start on the day, we made it as far as Sanderson, TX. We stayed at the same park as last year, only we had full hook ups, rather than in the overflow area. All the guy wanted was the $20.00. He was not interested in names, license plate numbers, etc. Just pay him the money and get parked. A very quiet night, with few trains and little traffic on the road. A bit cool again, however we were at an altitude of 2790' from the 825' at the Lone Star Corral. On the way, we stopped at Langtry, TX and a visit to the Judge Roy Bean museum. This was operated and maintained by the state of Texas. Very nice with nice gardens, and a replica of the opera house he had built as well as the original saloon that he used as his court house where he made the law. His was the "Law West of the Pecos". Lots of artifacts, many actually used by Judge Roy Bean.
Monday, we headed on west toward Ft. Davis and the McDonald Observatory. When we arrived at Ft. Davis we went to the campground we had picked out in the Passport book, however when we arrived, we were informed that they did not honor any discounts as the bank had taken over the campground and the gal there was a bank employee. We went on to another campground we found in the Passport book the Prude Ranch. It is a few miles out of town in the mountains toward the observatory. Is a dude ranch with all kinds of activities, horse back riding, jeep tours, shooting range, rodeo type activities, swimming pool and two campgrounds. The place was closed down for the winter, other than the campgrounds. We were the only one there until a class C came in about dark. The fellow came over and wanted to know if they could stay and pay in the morning when the office opened. We assured him that that would be the thing to do. We later met them at the observatory.
Tuesday, we woke up to a heavy frost, everything was white, however we had reached an altitude of over 5,000' and it felt like it. We drove on up the mountain to the observatory and watched a film on astrology and then enjoyed a talk by an astronomer about the sun and sun spots. We looked at the sun through one of the telescopes and checked the outer edge for flayers. A quite interesting program. We did not take the tour of the telescopes as it was cold, outside as well as inside the domes. They keep the floor of the telescope domes at about 40 degrees due to the precision makeup of the equipment. We returned to the Prude Ranch and hooked up the van and headed back down the mountain and headed back south to Marfa, TX and US90 and on west to Van Horn, TX where we fueled up and found a nice campground not to far from I10 and on the other side the RR tracks which parallel US90 from San Antonio west and maybe east of San Antonio. You can always depend on a RR track or an interstate highway next to the campground, maybe both.

Today we woke up to a wet misty condition, dark and dreary, so really did not have much ambition to do anything. We did get a few things ready to move, but in looking at the weather, it looks like a winter storm is coming this direction, or at least west Texas and southern New Mexico, with cold nights and windy conditions. Winds are to be 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 or 60. Not the kind of weather you want to be on the road in with a high profile vehicle. We have decided to stay another day and see what it looks like. If it is going to be cold and miserable there, we might as well stay here among friends and we can all be cold and miserable together.

Yesterday was Pearl Harbor Day. I was on the Ham radio for a while and was not able to find very many with Pearl Harbor Day memorial stations. I did talk with a group from the midwest, one from Urbana, IL who was talking with a group there and one in Fresno, CA. I could her all but one of them in the midwest as well as the one in CA. We had a nice chat and exchanged information as usual.
I really do not remember Pearl Harbor Day as I was only 5 and a half years old. My sister said that we went to Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis where hundreds of people had gathered to hear the news which was broadcast on loud speakers. Everyone was concerned as to what was going to happen to the United States of America, under these conditions. We were not that many years from the Great Depression of the 30's and many Americans were just getting back on their feet and now "this". Our father was working in a plant that made lenses for eye glasses. That was quickly converted to lenses for bomb sites and he was not called up in the draft, however many thousands of men joined the Army, Navy or Marines in the day or two following the attack. I do remember that the war really put the country back to work and the economy grew due to the war effort. Really, all I know is what I was told and have read in the years since the attack. I think that most will agree that the World changed on that day and will never be the same.

Today, it was cool and cloudy with the promise of some showers later in the day. Evelyn went to Hondo to go shopping to make preparation for our leaving here on Wednesday. That is, if it is not raining or too windy. We have the motor home pretty well ready to travel. However, after the first few turns and stops you find things that you did not stow properly and all you have to do is pick them up off of the floor and put them away.
The photos are of our beautiful Yellow Rose of Texas. It has been loaded with blooms and still has a lot of buds just ready to pop, however, the 21 degree morning about did it in. We did cover it up but that was really cool that night and I am not sure it will survive. The blossoms look pretty sad. We left copies of the flower for the owners of the lot where we are staying.
I played bridge this afternoon. Not really good cards, a couple of good hands but that was all. Afterwards we had a special event, ice cream tin roof sundays. I had never had one of these, however, it is ice cream with chocolate syrup with peanuts on top. Quite tasty, I must say. Not much appetite for supper with ice cream at 4pm. Probably have some pop corn and hit the sack and let the digestive system rest.

With the cold front moving across the country, it appears to be cold everywhere with snow in areas not used to snow. Maybe it will be warmer in Mesa when we get there. Not supposed to be in Yuma until after the first of the year. It should be warmer down there, if anywhere.
We had a couple here for the weekend and they were asking about problems crossing the Mexican border. They had heard that many RV had been stopped and searched. One member stated that they had been down the Baja without any problems. This couple had been going to Mexico for over 20 years without much trouble. They really looked old, I mean in their 80's or more, but so it is with the life on the road. They were traveling in a class C that looked to be about 25' or so and fairly new. Good for them.
One of the members, a single gal, lives in a Park Model and has a big 1 ton truck and a 5th wheel. She said she was tired of dragging the big 5th wheel around and was looking for a smaller motor home, maybe a class C. I find it hard to visualize a single gal, probably near 65 or so with a big 5'er dragging it around. But, everyone to their own desires.

Sunday the 29th we got a look at all of the Christmas decorations in the clubhouse. they really did a nice job of deorating, even a Menorra in blue. Ice cream at 4pm and I decided to have sherbert, much better than that rich ice cream. Monday, we have been here for a month, cloudy, rainy and cool, supposed to be much cooler in the next few days.
Tuesday, it rained most of the night and of course it was off to San Antonio for another Dr. appointment. He said that if we were comfortable with the current method of treatment then we could stay with it and not be concerned with any surgery at this point. So be it. We stopped in Hondo at Mc Bee's and picked up 1.5 lbs of brisket, 4 buns and all the fixins for 4 sandwiches and came back to the clubhouse to eat with the Drews. mmm good and quite tasty. Later we played Mexican Train with a set of dominos from the club house, double 15. Never do that again, the dots are smaller and too hard to count. Will take ours from now on.
Wednesday still cool and rainy supposed to have freezing temps and snow in the hill country, just north of us about 30 miles or so. Talking about snow in San Antonio and Houston.
Thursday and Friday were cool with a low of 21 in Hondo. We covered up the yellow rose bush in the yard but not sure we saved it as we had a hard freeze and heavy frost on everything.
Saturday we did not do much, worked around the RV, making preparations for leaving in a few days.
Sunday, it was cloudy early but cleared off and the sun has been shining all day. It will be ice cream at 6pm and maybe Mexican Train later, we will see about that.